This I Believe

About 1 1/2 years ago I went to a book signing @ Joseph Beth for This I Believe The Personal Philosophies of Remarkable Men and Women Edited by Jay Allison and Dan Gediman(NPR). Dan Gediman signed my copy and wrote "To Rxxxxx, What do you believe". The book is really excellant and the talk was fascinating. Weekly I listen to ipod downloads of This I Believe essays which I find interesting and sometimes even surprising point of views. Recently I have read or heard personal philosophies at church or in reflections on the death of a family member. So I thought I'd just note some that I think are valuable to me. In no particular order:

• An attittude of gratitude is key to a life well lived.
• Work hard and work smart.
• Beware of people and institutions (ie political and religious) who seek to influence you through fear.
• Beware of the oversimplifiers.
• Never be a victim. You may not be able to control everything that happens in your life, but you can control how you react.
• Always be the best at what you do, no matter how trivial it is.
• If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. (events of 2008 proved this one to be true.)

and philosophies particularly relative to our impending adoption:

• Good things come to those who wait.
• When you travel to a dream, pack just enough wishes, expect delays and enjoy the journey.